Legacy
by Cinderfire16
Summary: "You don't have to be the greatest cat who ever lived, but at least they'll remember your name."


No one minded her at the apprentice ceremony. Everyone flocked to her brother instead, treating him like the stars shined off his pelt. But not her. Some cats just started calling her Lightpaw. She didn't have a mentor, she tagged along on patrols when there was nothing more to do in camp. She was just another cat with a scratched eye after she came across a badger's den. Eventually, her brother got his warrior name. Mousefire the Great, or he might as well have been, for all everyone was fawning all over him. One or two cats started calling her Lightstorm.

Then her mother got sick. All of a sudden, it was as though she were the only child.

"Lightstorm, fetch me some soaked moss. Change my bedding, tell me how your day's going, I almost never hear about you…"

For good reason. She's dedicated her life to making sure that she was just another cat in the Clan. Let Mousefire be the special one. Lightstorm couldn't be bothered if no one knew she existed.

Her mother passed, and so did the leader. Life went on.

The new leader called her into his den one day.

"What do you want to do with your life?" He asked.

Why was he so concerned now? He hadn't so much as shot her a glance all her life. She could count on one paw the number of cats who knew anything about her past her name.

"What I'm doing is fine." Lightstorm offered. Hunting and fighting was the way of a warrior. What more could there be to do in a Clan?

"I guess I just noticed that you're not all that social. You have friends, don't you?"

Lightstorm had to think about that. There were cats who stopped to say hello and there were cats who relied on her when it came to patrols, some she even talked to consistently. But no friends.

Lightstorm shook her head.

"Would you like to have one?" He asked. Lightstorm tilted her head. Mousefire had friends. She didn't want to end up like him. He had _too_ many cats hanging around him.

"Maybe." She mused. "But I know most of the cats who would say hi to me, and they're friend _ly_ , sure, but nothing like Mousefire's group."

"Not all friends have to be like that." The leader explained. "They usually just start by getting to know each other. Going on patrol together, for instance."

"I go on patrol with everyone, Shadestar, it's what I'm good at."

"Walk with me." Shadestar invited. Lightstorm dipped her head and the pair loped into the forest.

They didn't hunt or run into any intruders on their walk, and Shadestar didn't really say much. He preferred to watch what other cats were doing, and Lightstorm found that she could definitely get used to that.

"Palestar named you after me." Shadestar admitted one day. He'd taken to finding her during mealtimes. They never shared prey. No one ever did, with her. But they did sit together and talk as they ate. "I thought it would be good for you. A change in pace."  
Lightstorm stopped chewing and blinked at her new friend.

"Whatever for?" She wondered.

"You're a background cat. If you died then there'd be one less cat to call for patrols and one less cat bringing in prey. You're a background cat, but that's not all you have to be."

"What if it's all I want to be? I'm comfortable here. I bring in my fair share of prey and when the time comes, I struggle just like everybody else. What is there to expect from the Clan if I turned into Mousefire overnight?"  
"People would notice you, Lightstorm! Cats would come up to you for more than just patrols. You have so much to talk about when we share prey. There's so much that you see in camp that other cats don't. Why not extend that sight to yourself?"  
"Because there's no need, Shadestar." Lightstorm shuffled her front paws uncomfortably. "I'm fine where I am. And what happens if I'm not? I become deputy someday? What would change?"

"Someone would listen to you."  
" _Everybody_ listens to me, Shadestar. I'm good at what I do."

"You're the cat everyone wants on a patrol. IS that all you do?"  
"Hunt and fight? That's what I'm good at, yes. Not everybody needs to interact with the world as much as you or Mousefire."

"But everyone deserves a legacy. What will cats say about you when you die? What stories will they tell?"

"If we had a story for every cat who ever lived, the elders would never get through them all. The point isn't to have your name go down in history, Shadestar. The point is to live, and have fun doing it. I'm fine where I am."

Shadestar contemplated this, fur disheveled in his frustration.

"I don't know if I can accept that." He admitted after a few heartbeats. _I'll try,_ he amended.

"You don't have to be the greatest cat who ever lived, but at least they'll remember your name."


End file.
